Grand finale: Sox win final home game

As the White Sox said goodbye to their fans and stadium workers Sunday, manager Ozzie Guillen welcomed the possibility of returning nearly his entire roster in hopes of regaining at least an American League Central title.

"If (general manager) Kenny Williams gives me the same ballclub, I don't mind managing the same ballclub," Guillen said before the Sox closed the home portion of their schedule with five home runs en route to a 12-7 victory over Seattle.

"Kenny Williams and (Chairman) Jerry Reinsdorf gave me a club to win."

The Sox can be eliminated from postseason play as soon as Monday night, but they gave their fans a memorable farewell performance, including two homers by Paul Konerko and a grand slam by Juan Uribe.

Given Williams' track record and the contractual situations of some Sox players, it's highly unlikely that a large majority of the roster will return. But Guillen wouldn't rule out the possibility of players such as leadoff man Scott Podsednik returning after a disappointing 2006 season.

"We won with him last year, and we had a good season with him this year," Guillen said. "A lot of people say, get a leadoff hitter. That's not too easy to find.

"We haven't talked about it. Do I expect him to come back? I want all my guys to come back, but it's not in my hands."

Podsednik, 30, who has an on-base percentage of .332 with 40 stolen bases, will earn slightly more than $2 million this season in base salary and incentives and is eligible for arbitration. But the free-agent pool is considered thin, and Texas' Gary Matthews Jr. could cash in on his breakout year. Another free-agent possibility is San Diego's Dave Roberts.

Jerry Owens stole 40 bases but had only a .330 on-base percentage for Triple-A Charlotte. In fact, third baseman Josh Fields led the Knights with a .379 on-base percentage and 28 stolen bases, but he is projected as a middle-of-the-order hitter.

"We're not that far," Guillen said of the Sox's chances of returning to the top. Though saying he didn't know the free-agent and arbitration status of his players, Guillen said, "We know we're going to have a team to compete in the division, and hopefully the team we have can help us do what we want to do."

But Guillen emphasized that the Sox need to improve their pitching and their ability to manufacture runs. He said the team struck out too much, pointing to Tadahito Iguchi's 108, Podsednik's 95, Brian Anderson's 86 and Uribe's 79.

Guillen already declared that one spring-training practice field will be used exclusively for players to work on bunts and hit-and-run plays.

The matter of improving pitching revolves around keeping up with AL Central foes Detroit and Minnesota as much as developing a reliable bullpen. The Sox's bullpen ERA swelled from 3.23 in 2005 to 4.54 this season, while the Tigers and Twins ranked 1-2 in pitching in the league.

Williams, who was unavailable for comment Sunday, said last week he didn't want his team to get old quickly, so the bullpen might be tweaked from within the organization.

"If you have a good bullpen, you'll be all right," Guillen said. "That's why I think New York has had a lot of success, and that's why I think Boston failed. That's why I think Detroit and Minnesota are where they are. If you have a good bullpen in the American League, you're definitely going to be in the pennant race."